Page 15 of Immortal Sins
The quill pauses on the page, and Lydia shrugs. “I’m an adult. I told them their incessant meddling got in the way of school, so they backed off. A bit.”
“Good for you. What about Jeremy? I saw you two holding hands…”
She shakes her head forcefully. “Jeremy is a friend. I’m done playing second fiddle to your sister, and I need a better boyfriend—preferably one who hasn’t almost killed his ex-girlfriend in a fit of rage.”
“Boo. That rules out pretty much every guy at Dark Falls.”
She snorts into her hand.
A soft knock on the door stops the conversation cold.
No one ever visits me here besides Lydia, and my dormmates are hateful.
“Julia? It’s me,” Oz says through the door.
Lydia grips her inked feather so hard, I think it’ll splint.
I crack open the door. “Hello, professor,” I say with as much pep as I can muster.
The newly appointed headmaster offers me a meek smile. “How are you?”
“Good—Sure—Great—I’m okay.”
Real smooth, Winslow.
“I didn’t know you had company.” He lowers his voice and leans in. “You should come to my cabin Friday night. I know how nerve-wracking a public trial can be. I’ll help you prepare your testimony.”
Now that I know what he did and how he operates, I see beyond the cool, relaxed, professor mask.
Each calculated word rolls off his tongue in a crafted illusion of warmth and accessibility. Oz makes you feel heard and important. He’s not a teacher that asks trick questions and reminds you of your incompetence. Every bit of his persona, down to the understated clothes, and the approachable body language, puts you at ease.
Only his gray stare betrays the intensity, the hunger. The deviance.
I wonder how he seduced my sister. Did he start with long looks and innocent brushes with her, too? He literally enchanted a blanket to make students feel safe, so nothing should surprise me.
“Yes, thank you, professor.” The urge to clench my jaw becomes so potent that I fake a yawn to get rid of a cramp. “What time?”
He peers around the room behind me. “Eight thirty.”
My pulse spikes. If he spots the seedling… I brace my arm on the doorframe and plaster a bright smile on my face. “I’ll be there.”
Loud steps echo up the stairwell as Oz leaves, and I’m not sure he bought my carefree act. My heart in knots, I close the door and hurry back to the bed.
“We might not get another chance to enter his cabin. Could we cast the upside-down spell before Friday? If the horn is in the cabin, we could steal it then,” Lydia suggests. “If it’s not in the cabin, we could still take advantage of his meeting with you to break into whatever vault he keeps it in.”
“It’s a tall order. Last time, it took three days for the bud to bloom.”
The seer plays with her fingers. “Okay, but if we could locate it in time, how are you going to steal it?”
I avert my gaze. “Flynn assured me he could get inside any earth-made safe.”
A wolfish smile spreads on Lydia’s glossy lips. “Your ears are red again.”
“Shut up.” I throw a pillow at her face, but fire warms my ears.
Flynn’s kisses shook me. Whenever I think of our make-out session, I picture his tattoos—and Cole’s—and how crazy close they must have been when they had them done.
Cold shower for one, please.
